Chapter 143: Don’t Do Anything You’ll Regret
As the Chuseok holidays approached, a flood of previously unreleased content suddenly poured out.
Starting with <Dance in the Night> filmed with Sung Jihoo during the summer, then the Idol Athletic Championships Chuseok special, and finally a healing reality show prepared by the self-produced team.
Amid the wave of content, Dusty fans let out screams of joy.
Posts related to the Athletic Championships started appearing one after another in the community.
[Who just ran the relay?]
I was watching the Athletic Championships, and who was that person who ran so well just now?
Kind of? Looked like a hamster.
(Blurry photo)
He was wearing blue, but I couldn’t see properly because I was eating while watching.
I wanted to know his name, but the match already ended ㅠㅠ
-StarDust Do Seohan
└That’s our Seohan!
└ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋAh
└Why is it that even other fans call you a hamster ㅠㅠ
└At this point, isn’t this post written by a Dusty fan? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└They said he looked like a hamsterㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Ah ㅠㅠ
-The hamster who ran well, the one who ranked first in the audition, that’s all Dusty’s youngest, Soft Hamjji, Do Seohan.
-Honestly, let’s add the Athletic Championships to Do Seohan’s filmography, he looked especially handsome that day.
└After the relay, when he gulped down water, it was seriously like a fake memory of a first love.
└2222 The kind of character who always sits by the classroom window in a youth drama.
└? Not in my school though.
└Feels like someone who wouldn’t exist anywhere, but at the same time, feels like he exists everywhere.
└What kind of feeling is thatㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└It means he’s handsome.
└The proud visual pick of Starf….
[Universe Dust’s self-produced show is fun]
As soon as the holiday started, I binge-watched what I had saved.
The kids are so harmless and all so cute ㅠㅠ
Even though they came from a survival group, they all seem close and have good chemistry.
I think I might stan them ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-If you stan, you’ll get endless content from Stardust.
└Surprisingly, Doubles is doing their job well, so there’s no sense of hiatus.
└The kids also communicate almost every dayㅠㅠ Truly filial idols.
└Our kids chatter nonstopㅋㅋㅋㅋ There are so many talkative ones, whenever I check Private Messages, there are dozens piled up.
└Yeah, they really treat fans well.
-I just joined the fandom, and I want to buy a Universe personal subscription, any member you recommend?
└The ones who come often are Seo Haim, Do Seohan, Jin Sehyun, and the maknae line~ Funny one is Ha Junseo.
└Ha Junseo’s the funny oneㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ He’s seriously always saying something strange alone.
└Junseo’s subtly out of it….
└If you subscribe to Junseo, you can see Seo Chae’s daily life.
└Seo Ian ㅊㅊ sings late at night.
└Ah, crazy, so heart-fluttering.
└Universe Dust members all have good attendance in Universe, so just pick anyone who feels like they could become your bias.
└The most talkative is definitely Haimㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Really, if you turn around for just a moment, you’ll have dozens or even hundreds of messages piled up, our chatty chick ㅠㅠ
-But since it’s Chuseok, won’t our kids do a live?
└They’ll probably wear hanbokㅇㅇ Tiple does it every year too.
└We’re thankful for Doubles’ self-produced shows, but give us a live too.
└Ah, I’m so excited like crazy….
└2222 I think they’ll do it the day after tomorrow.
└Infinite waiting ㅠㅠ
└Please do a hanbok-wearing songpyeon-making live.
.
.
.
.
The things we had diligently filmed were broadcast one by one, and reactions followed.
Especially the Athletic Championships—since it aired during Chuseok season, even adults around me mentioned it.
The hard summer had paid off.
From now on, things would only get busier though.
“Oh wow, today’s makeup looks so good on you!”
A staff member at the salon fussed as she covered the mirror with her hand. Seohan looked into the mirror and smiled.
“Right? Maybe because it’s for filming?”
“Wasn’t it for a music video? What, is this your first full album?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“You must be so nervous. But it’ll do well. Our salon has good energy. All the celebrities who come here do well. Even Tiple! Tiple comes here too~.”
“Ah, I heard from a senior. Thank you.”
Today was the day of Stardust’s first full album music video shoot.
The makeup, done a bit heavier to account for lighting panels, sparkled under the salon lights.
The black hair that had been covered with dye during the last promotions had gradually returned to its natural shade of brown.
Would they try bleaching it this time?
Nothing had been heard yet.
Seohan rubbed his sleepy eyes lightly and stretched.
“Ahh, I’m so sleepy.”
Maybe because they had been pushed since early morning during the holiday, his arms cracked loudly.
“Looks like everyone’s tired.”
The other hyungs didn’t look much different. Seo Ian had been nodding off since earlier.
“…….”
At times like this, talk about vacation was bound to come up.
Breaking the silence with a clap, Ha Junseo stood up.
“Oh, right.”
Ha Junseo’s eyes sparkled as he asked the others.
“What’s everyone doing for the holiday?”
“Holiday?”
“Oh yeah, we have one!”
They called it a holiday, but in reality, it was only about two days off, slightly away from Chuseok.
It wasn’t really enough time to relax, so what they could do was limited.
Overseas travel was out of the question, and even going somewhere for fun seemed hard.
Without hesitation, Seohan spoke.
“I think I’ll go to my parents’ house.”
“Me too.”
It seemed most of their plans were similar. Jin Sehyun propped his chin with one hand while flipping his phone around.
“Don’t you think we’ll just collapse and sleep for two days once we get home?”
“I’m going to play to the fullest!”
Just then, Seo Haim spoke up with a bright smile.
Earlier, when she was getting her makeup done, she had looked half-asleep, but the moment vacation was mentioned, her eyes lit up.
Jin Sehyun chuckled and turned to Seo Haim.
“What are you going to do for fun?”
“I’m going to see my sister and my mom. We decided to go eat at a buffet!”
“Buffet? Sounds delicious.”
Seohan nodded absentmindedly at their conversation, then paused belatedly.
“Hm?”
He remembered the phone call he had overheard during reality filming.
‘Yes, Mother.’
‘I couldn’t make it either.’
The way she addressed her had changed?
“…!”
As Seohan mulled over the oddness he felt, Seo Haim kept talking.
“My sister said she’d get me free tickets to the aquarium this time! But won’t there be a lot of people? Should I wear a cap pulled down? I really wanted to go back when I was a trainee. I just missed the timing.”
“An aquarium should be fine, right? Just go.”
“Should I?”
Listening to her cheerful chatter, it didn’t sound like anything was wrong.
Maybe it really was just a misunderstanding.
Seohan tilted his head for a moment, then brushed it off.
Or more precisely, he had no choice but to brush it off.
“Huh?”
Seo Haim, who had been cheerfully rambling about her holiday plans, suddenly clammed up.
Because an entirely unexpected face was standing right behind her.
Kang Siwoo stood up in surprise and bowed his head.
“Ah, hello.”
What’s this hyung doing here?
An unexpected guest suddenly appearing in the room.
It was Jeong Wonjae from Hyper.
He must have stopped by the salon for a shoot, and the timing just happened to overlap.
I hadn’t heard that Hyper used the same salon, so I didn’t know.
It was true I hadn’t been particularly interested, but I never thought we’d bump into each other like this.
Seo Haim looked up at him with a reluctant expression.
Her earlier joy about vacation was gone, and she spoke in a calm voice.
“…What brings you here.”
“Can I talk to you for a moment?”
Jeong Wonjae’s clear gaze landed on me.
I pointed at myself with wide eyes.
“Me?”
When I asked again, just in case, Jeong Wonjae nodded.
‘Why is he calling me?’
I didn’t know what for, but his tone wasn’t aggressive.
It really felt like he had come here with a purpose.
“It’ll only take a moment.”
This was suspicious.
We moved to a quieter place.
Even as I followed Jeong Wonjae, only question marks filled my head.
Since <Dance in the Night>, I hadn’t had any particular interactions with him.
He wasn’t the type I wanted to get involved with, and I had no interest in building ties with someone who was bound to get into a scandal eventually.
That time he had picked a fight was the only incident.
‘I didn’t do anything terribly wrong either, did I?’
There was no reason for lingering resentment.
Which meant there shouldn’t have been anything he needed to say to me privately.
I frowned slightly, wondering what he was after.
At that moment, Jeong Wonjae carefully parted his lips.
“I want to ask you something.”
“Yes.”
He slid over a business card.
I lowered my head slightly to check the writing.
‘What the.’
Park Hanseok Plastic Surgery Clinic.
It was the same clinic I had noticed once in passing.
Feigning ignorance, I tilted my head.
“Are you recommending a clinic to me?”
“…….”
“I’m satisfied with my face right now though….”
Without entertaining the joke, Jeong Wonjae cut me off immediately.
“Have you heard anything about this clinic?”
‘Get it together.’
That was the same thing Do Seohan had told me in front of that clinic, and the look in his eyes kept bothering me.
“This clinic…?”
“I’m asking if you’ve heard anything bad about it.”
At that, my gaze wavered slightly.
Thankfully, my head was lowered naturally, so he couldn’t see it.
I calmly stroked my chin and asked back.
“I’m not really interested in plastic surgery clinics. Since they’re about fixing things, of course there’d be side effects. Did you go?”
“I went, but I didn’t do anything.”
“…….”
He didn’t go through with it.
At that blunt admission, I let out a small laugh.
‘So it’s true.’
Jeong Wonjae swallowed dryly and looked up at me.
If it hadn’t been for the text he received from Lee Juhyung, he might have brushed it off.
But.
Last week, when he had finally decided to turn to drugs, he had gotten a frantic message from Lee Juhyung of Fisher.
-Hey, did you go to that clinic?
└Not yet
└Hey, hey, I’m really freaking out
└??? What’s going on
He had called right away, and Lee Juhyung’s voice had been shaking.
What he blurted out was truly shocking.
‘That clinic is under police investigation. No way… am I going to get arrested?’
‘What?’
Big agencies tended to hear about these things quickly.
So maybe even those words back then….
Perhaps they had carried a hidden meaning, and that’s why he had called me here.
And.
That anxiety had finally become reality.
[‘Fisher’s Lee Juhyung’ Under Police Investigation for Drug Charges]
Jeong Wonjae shoved an article with the entertainment news headline in front of my eyes.
“This is it. The clinic from that article.”
“…….”
“Honestly, you knew, didn’t you?”
I did know, but not like this.
I hadn’t even thought about warning him.
This time, Jeong Wonjae had just been ridiculously lucky not to get caught.
‘What am I supposed to say?’
I couldn’t exactly tell him I had seen the future.
After a moment of thought, I spoke.
“Well, I’d say it was a coincidence. Maybe you should call it divine luck.”
“Divine luck?”
“Were you planning to use drugs there?”
At that question, Jeong Wonjae couldn’t answer.
It was too humiliating to admit it outright.
With a grimace, he muttered a belated excuse.
“I wasn’t seriously going to….”
“Enough.”
I sighed shortly and spoke.
“Don’t do anything you’ll regret.”